


No matter what

by MutteringWhispers



Category: NCT (Band), NCT 127 - Fandom
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Canon Compliant, Heat (without actual sex), M/M, Mutual Pining, Rated M for mentions of sexual themes, Soulmates stuff, Swearing, Teen Angst, Yuwin too, jaeyong if you squint, kind of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-05
Updated: 2018-03-26
Packaged: 2018-12-11 12:38:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11714556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MutteringWhispers/pseuds/MutteringWhispers
Summary: They've always been there for each other, from the very beginning, and if there's something that terrifies Donghyuck the most, that would be change. How is he supposed to deal with the huge change in his relationship with Mark after he presents in front of him?





	1. Things are bound to happen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello there! It’s been soooooo long since the last time I posted something, I know I suck :’) But I’m finally back! Yesterday at 2 a.m. I got inspired and decided to write this Markhyuck three-shot, I’ve fallen in love with these two cuties and I couldn’t help myself, I needed to write them.  
> In case you haven’t read the tags, this is an omegaverse/canon compliant kind of fic, so, if it doesn’t suit your taste, I recommend you to abandon this story right away. Also, there’s going to be mentions of sexual themes but not actual smut, and lots of swearing because I, again, can’t help myself, I love “angsty” stories (but it’s going to have a happy ending, I promise~).  
> I’ve realized that there aren’t much NCT fics out there, and I haven’t found many omegaverse stories, so I decided to write one myself. I hope you guys enjoy it!
> 
> DISCLAIMER: This story is obviously and completely fictitious, the characters here are fictitious as well since we all know very well that NCT are real people and have nothing to do with omegas, alphas or betas. I’ve just written this with entertainment purposes and by no means have I intended to offend anybody.  
> ENGLISH IS NOT MY MOTHER TONGUE, SO ALLOW ME TO APOLOGIZE BEFOREHAND!

Donghyuck doesn’t remember the last time he was this upset, anger boiling under his skin like an illness-like fever. He tries to calm down his ragged breath, chest heaving fast as if he’s just ended a dance practice session. He feels hot, he’s sweaty, but his hands are shaking so badly that he can’t even ball them into fists.

Slamming the bathroom door with unneeded force, he goes straight to the sink, opening the faucet and setting the temperature to the coolest possible. Carelessly splashing cold water to his face does little to help him reduce his body heat, so he stands straight again, looking at his own reflection in the mirror, now marred with hundreds of water drops running down its surface. His face is flushed, contorted in a mixture of frustration and anger, and he looks away, unable to stand his own stare.

“Donghyuck?” He hears Jaehyun’s sleepy voice through the bathroom door.

Donghyuck wishes nothing more than to be left alone right now, but he knows that that’s practically impossible in a house shared with eight other people. Actually, he’s surprised by the fact that the others haven’t woken up yet or smelled him.

He hears Jaehyun softly knock on the door again. “Hey buddy, is everything okay? Can you open the door?”

Damn Jaehyun and his ability to always be able to tell when somebody is upset, but well, it’s not like he’s been completely subtle by storming inside the dorm and carelessly slamming closed the bathroom door. He’s sure that his scent is also giving him away.

He breathes in deeply, hands grabbing the sink’s edge tightly. Does he have any other option? Maybe if he closes his eyes and wishes strongly enough for Jaehyun to go away, he will finally be left–

A metallic _click_ resonates in the silent hallway, and seconds after Jaehyun is opening the door. His hyung is wearing his pyjamas, hair dishevelled and eyes squinting at the bright light of the bathroom. Somewhere inside the mess of emotions jumbled inside his chest, he feels a pang of guilt. It’s three a.m. in the morning and they have a schedule tomorrow. Jaehyun should be sleeping.

 _Fuck._ A new and fresh wave of heat washes over him, and he tries to desperately close the door again, not caring at all about the fact that he’s probably hit Jaehyun straight on the face and that he’s behaving like a 5–year-old right now.

“Donghyuck what the fuck?!” Jaehyun exclaims, hands pushing the door inwards.

It doesn’t take long for it to open enough for Jaehyun to slide in, door shutting closed the moment he stops pushing. It just serves to further anger the youngest, who feels even worse in front of a confused and kind-of-mad Jaehyun.

“What the hell was that Hyuck? What’s going on?” He asks.

As if on cue, he hears the main door to their dorms being hastily opened, hurried steps approaching the hallway.

“Donghyuck? Donghyuck!” He hears a very familiar voice call for him.

“Fuck,” Donghyuck curses to himself, hurriedly pushing a very much confused Jaehyun away from the door and locking it in a fast swift.

Mere instants later he hears Mark’s voice again, accompanied this time with some door rustling. “Donghyuck, open the door!”

Donghyuck swears that he feels as if he’s going to throw up, heart beating at a maddening pace inside of his chest. When the door is banged once more he puts his hands against its surface, as if like this, he would be able to placate the other’s attempts to enter. Out of the corner of his eye he can see Jaehyun’s confused stare watching everything with an open mouth, as if he was still thinking of what to do. Somehow, he finds it in himself to pity his hyung.

“Donghyuck!”

“Shut up! Leave me alone!” He exclaims, voice shaking with… rage? Frustration? Unshed tears?

“Open this fucking door, we’re going to talk about it!” If Mark cursing isn’t enough of a hint for Donghyuck to know that the other is mad as hell, he doesn’t know what it is.

“There’s nothing to talk about! Nothing!”

Suddenly he hears another voice behind the bathroom door, rough from sleep but unmistakably Taeyong’s. The situation has just become ten times worse.

“What’s going on? What’s all this fuss about?” He asks.

Mark falls silent and Donghyuck clutches his hand over his chest where his heart is supposed to be. After a moment of silence, he hears somebody sniffing the air, and Donghyuck knows that he’s done for.

“Donghyuck open the door. Now,” Taeyong commands, using his leader voice.

Donghyuck's rooted to the spot, unable to move out of anxiety, but Jaehyun seems to finally snap out of his confused state and rapidly unlocks the door.

When the door opens inwards, a very much agitated Mark, a mad but mostly concerned Taeyong, a confused Winwin and four more worried hyungs that Donghyuck avoids to look at, are revealed. He feels trapped, and stupid too. Why did he think that coming back to the dorms was a good idea? But where else was he supposed to go? Back to Busan with his mother? That thought makes him feel mad at himself, he doesn’t need his mother's help, he doesn’t need nobody’s help.

“Donghyuck, I-” Mark starts.

“Stay where you are!” He exclaims, moving further away from the door and bumping against the bathroom wall.

He tries to block it but he’s unable to ignore the scents lingering around him, giving him information about his teammate’s states and emotions at the moment. Worry, concern, uneasiness, confusion, _pity_. Donghyuck closes his eyes. That’s what he didn’t want, that’s exactly what he’s been trying to avoid for months. Or maybe years?

Deep down inside his heart he’s always known what he was going to be when he presented, either by the way he would always subconsciously seek for the alphas’ attention, or by the fact that he’d found himself unwillingly attracted to all things alpha-related. But it didn’t make it easier to digest.

“Okay, let’s all calm down,” Taeyong says out loud, but mainly looking at Mark. “Donghyuck, I know that you feel confused right now, and that you’re probably very uncomfortable with all of us here, but we need to bring you to the hospital before-“

“No! I’m not going anywhere!” His eyes sting and he braces himself. He doesn’t want to cry, he really doesn’t, but everything’s so frustrating. Why of all people had this to happen to him?

“Hyuckie, you know how this things work,” Jaehyun tries to explain to him, hand rubbing soothingly up and down Donghyuck’s arm. “If we don’t bring you to the hospital immediately, you’re going to go into-”

“No! No please, don’t say it.” His voice sounds pathetic to his own ears. He must look pathetic as well.

He observes the way in which his hyungs look at each other, concern and something else that Donghyuck doesn’t want to name filling their eyes. He’s being difficult, he knows that very well. It would be way easier for all of them if he just behaved like a normal person and quietly accepted to go to the hospital to get a check-up and treatment before things get too complicated. It would’ve been way less dramatic if he’d have had immediately called Taeyong when he presented. It would’ve been way more convenient if he’d have had told his members about his imminent presentation when the symptoms started to get too strong to be a mere cold.

It would’ve been less painful if he wouldn’t have had presented as an omega in front of his best friend. Mark Lee. An alpha.

Suddenly, Jaehyun steps in front of Donghyuck, blocking the other’s stares. “Hyung, let me talk to him. Alone,” he asks Taeyong directly.

Taeyong is not only the group’s leader, but also their pack’s alpha, so it’s just natural for Jaehyun to look for his approval. And well, if there’s someone that Taeyong would listen to right now, that would be Jaehyun. Donghyuck suspects that the special bond that Jaehyun and Taeyong share is more than just friendship, despite the fact that they’d always refuse so if asked.

Taeyong seems to contemplate it for a couple of seconds, but finally gives in, nodding silently and adding a “you have two minutes” before closing the bathroom door again.

Donghyuck doesn’t dare to look up at his hyung, he’s too ashamed to do so, and to be honest with himself, he’s been feeling very dizzy for a while already and he has the suspicion that he’d fall down if he tried to move his head even if it was just a centimetre.

 “Okay, why don’t you sit down? You’re starting to look pale,” Jaehyun starts. Sometimes Donghyuck thinks that the older is capable of reading his thoughts.

Listening to his advice, he sits down on the toilet, supporting his head with both his hands. The world is spinning around him and he has to close his eyes to avoid vomiting.

“Donghyuck, I know that right now the only thing that you want to do is to be left alone. I get it, these things suck: you’re irritable, it’s frustrating, you feel cold but too hot at the same time, your skin itches, your head feels like it’s going to burst and there’s that undefined feeling in your gut that makes you want to vomit everything inside your stomach. I know that you probably just want to sleep it off, but believe me, it’s not going to go away, it’s only going to get worse, I’ve been through that too,” he tries to reason with him.

Jaehyun’s right, obviously he is, and Donghyuck is very well aware of that. But, does that make the situation less complicated? Less embarrassing? Less humiliating? No.

“Hyung, this more than just sucks, it’s horrible, a tragedy even!” He exclaims.

“Well, I must say that most people I know await this moment with impatience.”

“Not if you’re a fucking…” Donghyuck falls silent, unable to continue.

“A fucking what?” Jaehyun waits for the younger to answer but when the other says nothing he goes on. “You don’t even want to say it aloud? Is it that embarrassing for you?”

Donghyuck remains silent. Is it? Is being an omega such an embarrassment? He observes his hyung in front of him. Jaehyun is tall, broad, handsome, has the sweetest smile that Donghyuck’s ever seen. He’s really perceptive, one of the nicest person he’s had the opportunity to meet, always eager to help others and really, really hard-working. Almost immediately, he sees Ten’s smile in his mind. Are his hyungs embarrassing?

“Do you think that being an omega is humiliating? Makes you less… worthy?”

“No! Not at all hyung!” He refutes, immediately regretting implying that.

“Then what, Hyuckie? Why are you-?”

 “I’m scared,” he mutters, voice half-broken.

The room falls silent. Donghyuck regrets saying that out loud but then, he realizes something: being an omega is not embarrassing, the problem is himself. He’s the embarrassing one.

Suddenly, he feels Jaehyun’s hand wiping his cheeks. When has he started crying?

“That’s more than normal. It’s a scaring process to say the least.”

“The process is not what scares me…”

“What is it then?” Jaehyun asks softly, hand still stroking the younger’s cheek.              

Donghyuck stays silent for a moment. Should he say it? Jaehyun’s just proven to be helpful, a worried hyung willing to stay with him and somehow guide him through all this mess. It’s highly unlikely that he’ll laugh at him, but at the same time… Donghyuck knows that Jaehyun is very perceptive, and that he’ll know what he really fears the moment he speaks up. Looking at his hyung’s face, he just sees eyes full of worry and love.

Taking a deep breath, he mutters: “The fact that everything’s going to change.”

Jaehyun says nothing in the beginning, just keeps looking at Donghyuck’s eyes as if looking for something else. And whatever it is, he seems to find it.

“Yes. Things will change, that’s inevitable. But sometimes, things change for good.”

His smile is sincere and contagious, and Donghyuck feels his own lips forming a small smile too. His hyung never fails to comfort him.

Suddenly, somebody knocks on the door again and the false bubble of tranquillity is shattered. Donghyuck feels way worse than before. All of a sudden, he realizes his own state: he’s dripping sweat, breathing uneven, almost hyperventilating, he feels weak and too hot to be normal, his vision is blurred and his mouth feels dry, and the undefined feeling that Jaehyun just mentioned before is now making his insides churn, spreading to his every fibre a feeling that Donghyuck’s never felt before. He’s definitely going to faint.

“Jaehyun, there’s no more time, he’s practically already started!” Taeyong’s voice sounds anxious.

“I just need one more minute,” Jaehyun begs, grabbing Donghyuck’s face between his hands to force the younger to look at him.

Suddenly, something bangs the door and a deep growl makes Donghyuck’s hair stand on end. He would recognize that voice anywhere.

“Fuck! Doyoung, take Mark out of here, NOW!” Taeyong shouts.

Somewhere inside of his confused mind, the fact that Mark is being dragged outside, and the possibility that it’s probably because of him –of his scent–, registers on Donghyuck’s mind.

“Okay Donghyuck, we have no more time left, so please listen to me. I need you to take this, it’s a suppressant and it’s going to help us to mask your scent.”

When did Jaehyun grab a suppressant pill he doesn’t know, but he doesn’t fight back when the older almost forces his mouth open and shoves the red pill down his throat.

“Good boy. Now I need you to cooperate. I’m not going to force you Donghyuck, but you know that it’s going to be worse if you go into heat here, your scent is already too strong. Even for me and I’m an omega myself,” Jaehyun reasons with him. He’s tried to avoid talking about the heat to not make Donghyuck uncomfortable, but he has no more time left.

“O-okay,” Donghyuck mumbles, and Jaehyun doesn’t need further encouragement before opening the door to let Taeyong in.

From that moment on, everything’s a blur for Donghyuck. He feels Taeyong lifting him up, and when they exit the bathroom he unconsciously looks for the person that caused all this mess in the first place, but Mark is nowhere to be found. Donghyuck feels delirious, and his body has started to shake, heat almost unbearable. He hears his members shout at each other, hears someone say something about calling their manager, and then, everything goes pitch black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew! That was a long-ass ride (not at all, but I couldn’t help myself xD)! As I said in the beginning, this story is going to be split in three chapters, so I think I’ll post the second part soon! Hope you guys enjoyed it, I’ll appreciate any kind of feedback :D Lots of love~ and see you soon!
> 
> Also, here you have some extra information about the story:  
> -Taeil: Beta  
> -Johnny: Alpha  
> -Taeyong: Alpha, leader of the pack  
> -Yuta: Beta  
> -Ten: Omega  
> -Doyoung: Beta  
> -Jaehyun: Omega  
> -Winwin: Beta  
> -Mark: Alpha  
> -Donghyuck: Omega
> 
> This is an Omegaverse story, but I’ve "made up" some rules:  
> -Normally, all people present when they turn 18 years old, but in some exceptional cases (like Donghyuck’s, which will be explained later on), it can happen before.  
> -When they present, omegas go into heat for the first time, alphas into a rut, and betas kind of just fall into a deep slumber for days.  
> -In this fic, members of a same pack have the capability of “sensing/smelling” each other’s moods/emotions/conditions.


	2. Realization

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello there guys! Here you have the second chapter, it’s longer than the first one so I hope you enjoy it :) The parts in italics are flashbacks!  
> Before allowing you to continue reading the story, I wanted to specify some things:  
> -In this fic Mark is 18 (has been for half a year already) and Donghyuck’s 17. It’s necessary for the story-line (you’ll see~).  
> -I’ll explain some things in the final notes, so make sure to read that!
> 
> DISCLAIMER: This story is obviously and completely fictitious, the characters here are fictitious as well since we all know very well that NCT are real people and have nothing to do with omegas, alphas or betas. I’ve just written this with entertainment purposes and by no means have I intended to offend anybody.  
> ENGLISH IS NOT MY MOTHER TONGUE, SO ALLOW ME TO APOLOGIZE BEFOREHAND!

“…still sleeping?” “I think… still smell…on his blood.” “How long…wake up?”

Donghyuck tries to open his eyes but it seems as if there’s somebody pressing their thumbs against his eyelids, rendering him unable to even blink. He tries to turn around, but his limbs aren’t listening to him either, arms and legs uselessly remaining still against his own will. He then tries to open his mouth, say something, alert those inside the room that there’s something weird going on with his body, but he soon realizes that he’s also unable to do that too.

_What the fuck?_

“…you hungry? I can stay…want.” “I just… with manager-hyung… about you?”

He hears people walking around the room. Somebody opens the window and Donghyuck wishes he could speak because he’s really hot and the warm breeze entering from outside it’s not really helping him feel any better. Abandoning his efforts on trying to speak up, he focuses on the two people in the room that are having a conversation, but it seems like his sense of hearing is not working well either because he just gets half of what they say. It’s frustrating to say the least.

Donghyuck stops trying after a while, he’s never been a patient person to be honest, so he tries to remember what’s happened to him. That proves to be extremely difficult too, a thick fog clouding his memories makes it impossible for him to piece together the confusing images that start forming in his mind.

He sees himself in his room, and he remembers waking up feeling weird and hot. It’s like somebody is playing a video for him to watch, but Donghyuck knows that those are actually his own memories. Confused, he observes the next image that pops up in his mind, he sees himself walking outside their dorms, and he feels… angry? He doesn’t know why but he recognizes the familiar feelings as irritation, frustration and worry too.

The next image features somebody else – _Mark,_ his mind helpfully provides him–, and they seem to be arguing, he can’t figure out why since there’s no sound accompanying the images, but he feels really agitated and… that weird feeling it’s there again. It just seems to intensify the longer they argue, and with the next image Donghyuck’s able to recognize the room as their studio two blocks away from their dorm.

In this image, Mark is closer than before, and Donghyuck gets confused when he sees himself stepping back, trying to get further away from the older. What’s going on? Before he can ponder any longer on that, his mind is flooded with a pair of vibrant and bright blue eyes, looking directly at him. He feels like his soul is being pierced.

Suddenly, everything becomes too intense. The colors seem too bright, the feelings too confusing, and before he has the time to react his eyes open on his own.

He’s lying on his side, facing the open window. Donghyuck squints his eyes, the natural light flooding the room is hurting them and he tries to blink the discomfort away. When he attempts to move his hand to cover his eyes from the sunlight, he’s unable to do so, fingers twitching uselessly in front of him.

His nose itches all of a sudden, and he feels like he’s going to sneeze, but suddenly, it’s like somebody has pulled out a plug that was blocking his sense of smell. Thousands of scents attack his nose all at once, but there’s two that stand out the most: lemon and licorice.

“The kids have been asking to come and visit him, but the managers think that it’s better if Donghyuck isn’t bombarded with too many new scents.” Donghyuck recognizes the voice as Doyoung’s, and his brain tells him that the licorice-ish scent belongs to him.

‘The kids’ are the fond way in which the hyungs address the NCT Dream members when they’re not in front of them, and Donghyuck has the sudden need of seeing his younger teammates. It’s not like it’s been long since the last time he saw them, the fact that him and Mark are part of both units forces them to move from one dorm to the other depending on their promotions. In the beginning it was kind of bothersome, but after a while he got used to it, and now he kind of likes it even.

“Well, it’s not like the nurses would allow them to enter, they’ve been very persistent with their ‘just-two-people-in-the-room-are-allowed’ stupid rule.” That’s Yuta’s voice, and he sounds pissed off. After quietly sniffing the air once more, he links the lemon scent to his Japanese teammate. He then recalls Ten complaining something about the room smelling too much like lemons when they were roommates.

The conversation draws Donghyuck’s attention back, and he realizes that he’s now able to hear everything clearly. He ponders over the idea of speaking up, making his hyungs know that he’s awake, but something tells him to remain quiet and still, so he just awaits for them to continue the conversation.

He hears Doyoung laugh. “I think it’s better like this. It’s been intense to say the least and with just two people allowed in the room, the others can rest in the dorms.”

Donghyuck laughs internally. That’s _so_ Doyoung, always being his smart self.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. I still don’t like that nurse, she’s a psycho,” Yuta replies.

“Don’t lie, you’re just mad because she yelled at Winwin when he didn’t understand that we couldn’t bring food in the room.”

“Perhaps…”

Donghyuck smiles (or tries to). His hyung is so whipped for the Chinese, but who blames him? Winwin-hyung is too cute for his own good sometimes.

“How’s Mark doing?” Doyoung suddenly asks.

Donghyuck’s heart skips a beat at the mention of the rapper’s name, and he doesn’t understand why. Yuta sighs frustrated, and that makes Donghyuck frown. What’s going on?

“He’s… alive?”

“ _Hyung,_ ” Doyoung admonishes him.

“I mean, he’s not bad but not great either, you get me? That rut was completely not supposed to happen,” Yuta explains, voice dripping worry. “The boy has been tormenting himself ever since he snapped out of it, and to be honest, I think that the fact that the managers are keeping him under arrest and not allowing him to visit Mr. Sleeping Beauty here, it’s just making it worse.”

In any other circumstances, Donghyuck would’ve gotten offended at Yuta referring to him as ‘Mr. Sleeping Beauty’, but his mind seems to have gotten stuck at the first sentence the older said. _A rut?_

_In his haste to get to the studio as fast as possible, he forgot to grab the keys, so when Mark opens the door looking as if he might just faint from exhaustion (but still fine as hell), Donghyuck hasn’t had the time to prepare himself to face the older. The vocal regrets coming almost instantly, head throbbing in a strange way when he looks up to greet Mark._

_He’s been feeling under the weather for the past few weeks, and he’s starting to think that what he initially believed to be just a cold, could be something else. What exactly, he isn’t sure, since it seems like the symptoms range from a light headache to random waves of heat, or from an itchy nose to losing his appetite. He didn’t want to worry any of his hyungs so he decided to wait it out, see if it would get better alone. But right now, standing in front of Mark, he feels himself getting dizzy. What the fuck’s wrong with him?_

_“Donghyuck? What are you doing here?” He asks surprised. Donghyuck realizes that the rapper’s voice is rough around the edges, and that could only mean two things: or he’s been overworking himself again, or he’s called his mother. One look at the older’s face and he knows that it’s probably both things._

_“I should be the one asking that,” Donghyuck replies._

_The rapper has the decency to look away knowing very well that the younger is in all his right to be mad at him. In the end, it’s been him who promised to Donghyuck and his hyungs just a week ago that from now on he would start going back home before 12 a.m. He knows he has no excuse this time._

_“Look, I know, I broke my promise but-”_

_Donghyuck pushes pass him, entering the studio without waiting for the other to finish his sentence. He knows is another useless excuse, like always, but he hasn’t come here to argue about Mark’s tendencies of overworking himself. Or well, not about his broken promise._

_Walking pass the dance studio, he goes straight to the small room where he knows Taeyong and Mark spend most of their free time when they’re not practicing their dance routines or hanging out with the others in the dorms. Donghyuck observes the room, everything’s neat apart from a stack of sheets with unfinished lyrics scribbled on it –probably thanks to Taeyong since he’s been roommates with Mark before the older presented, and he knows very well that the other is not tidy at all–. He recognizes Mark’s handwriting, and for a moment, he’s tempted to grab one of the papers and read its contents to distract himself from the butterflies flying around his stomach, but he hears Mark’s voice behind him._

_“You know that I don’t like showing the lyrics to anybody before they’re more or less finished,” the older mutters._

_Donghyuck turns around, getting startled when he almost crashes against the rapper. He didn’t expect him so close and Mark seems to notice, taking a step back to leave more room between them. Clearing his throat, he looks up at the other’s eyes. Since when is Mark way taller than him?_

_The vocal tries to ignore the tension between them. A while back, Mark would’ve probably made some kind of witty remark about Donghyuck getting flustered because of him. Heck, a while back Donghyuck wouldn’t even had gotten startled in the first place since they were used to being attached to the hip 24/7. But things aren’t like this anymore, not since the rapper presented as an Alpha and Donghyuck decided to be a coward and distance himself from him._

_He would never admit it out loud, but the reason behind his sudden cold treatment towards the Canadian was completely based off of his own insecurities. He’s always admired Mark, since the very beginning, but his initial platonic and naïve admiration just seemed to grow bigger and bigger after the rapper presented as an Alpha, to the point in which Donghyuck wouldn’t be able to control his scent in front of him; to the point in which he himself wouldn’t consider it a ‘platonic and naïve admiration’ anymore. Fearing that the other members or Mark himself would end up noticing, he decided to do the stupidest thing possible: distancing himself from his best friend._

_So Donghyuck doesn’t blame the confused/surprised look on Mark’s face at his presence in the studio. Apart from the ungodly hours, it’s been months since the last time that Donghyuck willingly stayed alone in the same room with the rapper for more than two minutes besides the car rides when moving from the hyungs’ dorm to the dreamies’ dorm. Donghyuck’s done a great job at avoiding the older, but right now, the situation calls for him to step out of his initial plan of dodging Mark until he sorts out his own feelings._

_“Okay, I’m going to be direct here. Manager-hyung told me about your decision of staying in the Dream unit for two more comebacks at least,” he shoots, crossing his arms over his chest. “Are you nuts?”_

_Mark chuckles at his probably mispronounced English slang, but Donghyuck sees that the smile doesn’t reach his eyes. “Are we going to have this conversation right now? Because we have a schedule tomorrow, and we should probably-”_

_“Slow down right there_ muchacho _. Since when have schedules worried you in the slightest considering that your hobby is sleeping for less than 5 hours on a daily basis?”_

_“Okay, I guess we’re really doing it,” Mark mumbles to himself. “I wanted to calmly talk about it tomorrow with the other members too, but I see that manager-hyung hasn’t even given me the chance.”_

_Donghyuck feels bad for his hyung, but just for a brief moment. His manager originally didn’t want to tell him anything, but he so happened to eavesdrop a conversation between two staff members and his hyung hadn’t had any other option than to confirm Donghyuck that what he’d heard was true._

_“I know what you’re thinking, I’m already really busy and a break from one of the units would make me good, but the managers talked to me and suggested that I stayed for a little bit longer since-” Mark tries to explain himself but Donghyuck interrupts him once again._

_“I knew it! I knew that they had something to do with it! Mark, for god’s sake, you need a rest, you don’t have to say yes to everything they ask you to do!”_

_“Actually, yes I do have to, and you know this as well as I do,” Mark answers back, and Donghyuck notices that the older is starting to get angry. Not that he cares. If Mark getting mad at him is the cost of at least trying to dissuade him from overworking himself to death, Donghyuck gladly embraces it. “And even though it was their **suggestion** , the final decision was mine, and I’m not going to change my mind Donghyuck. Save your time.” _

_It sounds final, as if Mark doesn’t have any intentions of hearing out what Donghyuck has to say, as if there’s nothing to discuss. Oh boy, he’s so wrong if he thinks that he’s going to let it go with a ‘save your time’._

_“What? Do you think that the unit is going to crumble down into pieces the moment you leave?” The vocal asks, having to blink his eyes a couple of times because he’s starting to see blurry and up until now he’s never needed glasses. Maybe he needs to get his eyesight checked._

_“I didn’t say that, don’t put words that aren’t mine in my mouth Donghyuck.” Donghyuck sees it, the way in which Mark is starting to lose his cool, eyes hardening and mouth twitching when trying to avoid saying something that he would regret later._

_Donghyuck’s just seen the other mad twice: once when a staff member went too hard on Jisung for eating sweets before bedtime, and the other when Taeyong and Johnny had a stupid Alpha argument over something that was kept a secret from the Dream members (apart from Mark obviously, who happened to be present when the incident transpired). Donghyuck tried to get information from the rapper, but for the very first time since they met each other, Mark didn’t fall for his charms and didn’t say a word of what happened that day, so Donghyuck stopped trying after a while. Maybe it was better like this; if the hyungs believed that it was worth keeping it a secret, he would, for once, obey._

_“Well, then I don’t get what’s the deal with you staying longer. This unit is supposed to be for underage members, you’ve been an adult for half a year already, I don’t understand why are they ‘suggesting’ for you to stay.” Donghyuck fights back._

_He knows how it sounds like, it sounds as if he doesn’t want Mark in the unit, but it’s not like that. As much as he wants to avoid the rapper because of his unsorted feelings, and as much as he wants to lie to himself, Donghyuck loves having the other around. They’ve been together since they were kids, they’ve shared everything together, so having Mark away from him actually makes him feel anxious. But this time it’s not about him, it’s about his best friend’s health and their blind company that doesn’t seem to notice that they’re pushing Mark too much._

_The rapper’s mouth twitches again, and Donghyuck sees how he’s clenching his hands. Should he shut up? Let it be? Wait until tomorrow to talk about it with the other members?_

_“They believe that it’s better if I stay because I’m the current leader, and an Alpha, and they say that my presence stabilizes the group,” he explains. “I don’t know about that, I just know that Jisung and Chenle have been asking me to not abandon them for months, and that ever since I turned 18, Renjun has been telling me that he doesn’t think he’d be a good leader. Not to mention that manager-hyung has told me that Jeno and Jaemin have asked about what would happen to the group if I end up leaving. I don’t know if that means that ‘my presence stabilizes the group’, but I know that the others want me to stay, and I want to stay too, so I will. At least until the company allows me to.”_

_Donghyuck feels himself getting mad at the others. How could they be so selfish? But a voice in his head tells him that he’s being selfish too, and that maybe he’s not thinking about the group’s wellbeing, he’s not being objective. Perhaps Mark does really stabilize the group._

_“But I get it Donghyuck, I see what’s going on here.” Mark’s voice has suddenly turned ice cold and Donghyuck feels uneasy. He’s never heard him speak like that and the tension in the room is making him feel sick. “You could say it straight to my face, no need to pretend that you’re worried about my health.”_

_Donghyuck feels as if he’s been punched in the stomach. “What the fuck hyung? What are you saying?”_

_“What I’m saying is, that if you think that I haven’t realized how you’ve been avoiding me like the plague ever since I presented as an Alpha, you’re wrong. And that if you think that I don’t notice how uncomfortable you’ve become around me, you’re doubly wrong.”_

_The vocal feels his heart skip a beat before it starts beating madly against his ribcage. He closes his eyes for a second when the room starts spinning around him, breath caught in his throat and body feeling overheated all of a sudden. Why did he decide to come? Why couldn’t he stay at home and talk about it with Jaehyun-hyung or Taeil-hyung?_

_“It wasn’t my decision to become an Alpha, it took me by surprise too, you know? And I was so confused and lost in the beginning, but you turned your back on me, decided to ignore me and pretend that nobody realized what was going on.” Mark’s voice sounds so fragile that Donghyuck has the urge to hug him, to tell him that he didn’t know any of that, that he wasn’t aware of how badly he needed him, but he was starting to sweat too much for it to be normal and he was afraid of fainting if he moved in the slightest._

_“I tried to understand you, I talked to the hyungs, asked them if they knew what was wrong with you, if they knew if I had done something that bothered you, but they all told me to give you time, to allow you to get used to me,” the rapper scoffs, voice becoming cold like the ice again. “ **You** , having to get used to **me** , when we’ve always been together, when I’ve always considered you my best friend!”_

_Word after word get stuck in Donghyuck’s throat. He wants to say so many things, but right now his brain seems to be unable to do anything else but to notice how Mark is getting closer and closer to him, and how much the older’s grown in half a year, or how well does that white T-shirt hug Mark’s biceps, or how would his arms feel like if he hugged him, and–_

_Donghyuck feels like he can’t breathe._

_“But I’m still me! Yes, yes I’m an Alpha now, but what? I’m still Mark fucking Lee, Donghyuck, and I don’t understand why–”_

_He sees how Mark widens his eyes in utter surprise, hands automatically grabbing him by the waist when Donghyuck’s body seems to lose all signs of strength after colliding against his. Donghyuck’s mind is going on an overdrive because he feels how soft but chapped Mark’s lips are, and how cold they are but how hot they make him feel at the same time and, is that even possible? Is possible for a 17-year-old to die from emotional combustion?_

_As suddenly as he started the kiss, he breaks it, bringing his shaking hand to his own lips and, **oh my fucking god** , did he actually just kissed Mark Lee? His best friend? _

_“D-Donghyuck, what…?” Mark looks so confused that the vocal can’t stand to make eye contact with him._

_He feels horrified with himself because, since when is he incapable of controlling his own actions? His heart seems like it’s going to break his ribs, and his dizziness is just getting worse and worse by the minute._

_Donghyuck looks up at Mark once again, and he sees him stuttering. The older is saying something (or trying to), but Donghyuck can’t seem to focus on it because suddenly, he feels, no, he **smells** the change. _

_It’s subtle, subtle enough for Mark to not notice while fumbling with his own words, but it’s definitely there, unmistakable, unforgivable._

**_He’s just presented as an Omega._ **

Donghyuck gasps out loud, and for a moment, he fears that his hyungs might’ve heard him, but they seem too engrossed in their conversation to pay attention to a supposedly asleep Donghyuck.

He suddenly remembers everything, and things start to make sense to him. Why he’s in a hospital room, why he’s feeling numb and disoriented, why his nose has been itchy for months, why he’s suddenly capable of distinguishing people’s scents…

“Do you… Do you think that whatever happened in the studio that night triggered Donghyuck’s presentation?” Doyoung seems reluctant to ask, but his voice is firm when he does. The question draws Donghyuck’s attention back almost instantly.

The younger hears Yuta sigh out loud. “I’m not sure, but it could be. It could explain why Donghyuck has presented before he’s supposed to and why Mark went into a rut right after. I mean, it’s happened just a couple of months before Donghyuck will turn 18 but… It’s weird nonetheless.”

“But, if Mark triggered Donghyuck, why it didn’t happen before?” Doyoung asks back.

The vocal has to literally bite his tongue to avoid asking his hyungs what the fuck are they talking about. Donghyuck’s not an idiot, he knows the implication behind Yuta’s and Doyoung’s words, but it’s so uncommon, so rare, that there must be another explanation.

“Hasn’t Donghyuck been avoiding Mark since he presented? Heck, even the fans noticed. Some staff members have recently asked Taeyong to talk about it with them, but Taeyong told them that it was something that had to be sorted out by themselves,” Yuta shrugs.

“Maybe Taeyong-hyung was already suspecting something… I mean, he’s the leader after all,” Doyoung suggests. “But I think you’re right, perhaps Mark did trigger Donghyuck’s premature presentation, but instead of happening shortly after he presented as an Alpha, the process has been dragged on and the symptoms accumulating until… Until whatever happened that night.”

Donghyuck’s terrified, because what their hyungs are saying makes complete sense. What other alternatives are left? What else could explain his premature presentation? There were so many things: the weird feelings that just seemed to get worse every time he was near Mark, the ever existing tension between them, the strong bond they formed since the very beginning, the way in which they couldn’t seem to be far from each other for more than five minutes… Perhaps the staff noticed way before he even realized that his feelings towards Mark weren’t platonic anymore, maybe that’s why they’ve been put together in every single step since they met each other.

This time, he’s unable to stop a strangled gasp of realization escaping his lips, and this time his hyungs do hear him.

“Donghyuck?” Both Yuta and Doyoung say at the same time.

Donghyuck’s suddenly engulfed in a crushing-bones kind of hug, and he realizes that he’s regained his mobility because his hands are now clutching Yuta’s shirt as if his life depends on it, and he can’t control his sobbing, or the way in which he’s ruining his hyung’s shirt with his tears.

He feels Doyoung’s hand running through his hair, and in any other circumstances that would’ve make him feel better, but not now, not when he feels like his lungs have stopped working. He hears his hyungs shushing him, telling him to calm down, that everything will be okay, and in that moment Donghyuck realizes that he’s been repeating “Mark is my soulmate” over and over again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you go! I wasn’t planning to make this a Soulmate kind of fic, but it just happened, I don’t even know myself hahahaha…  
> Also, I wanted to clarify some things again (I know, I suck):  
> -The thing about Mark having to abandon NCT Dream’s unit because he turned 18 it’s something that I’ve made up, so no worries guys, it was just part of the plot.  
> -As explained in the first chapter, once you present your senses heighten, and even though before presenting a werewolf is already able to get information from their pack members by their scents, they’re unable to distinguish other people’s characteristic smells/scents until they present.  
> -As you’ve just read, Mark presenting as an Alpha was what triggered Donghyuck’s premature presentation as an Omega, since they’re soulmates. Also, Donghyuck going into heat triggered Mark’s rut.  
> -Just to clarify once again, there’s no smut in this story, maybe some really light ‘steamy’ scenes but nothing beyond that.  
> That’s it! I hope you guys liked it, as always, I’ll appreciate any kind of feedback, you guys make me want to keep on writing.  
> Love ya~


	3. Reunion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, I want to apologize for taking so long to update. I'm so, so sorry TT I went on a vacation with my family and then with my friends, so I didn't have the time to finish the chapter until now... I hope that you guys don't hate me too much.  
> Also, this is not the last chapter. I know that I originally said that this work was going to be a three-shot, but believe when I say that this story has its own will because before I realized, I was making things complicated, too complicated for it to be just a three-shot. I'm not sure if I'll need 1 or 2 more chapters to finish this, it will probably depend on the lenght since this one is almost as long as the two first chapters (I hope that makes up for the long wait).  
> I think I've made a lot of grammar mistakes this time and I apologize again, but I really wanted to post this as soon as possible, I'll probably come back and check it to see if I can correct some of them.  
> Without further ado, ENJOY!!
> 
> DISCLAIMER: This story is obviously and completely fictitious, the characters here are fictitious as well since we all know very well that NCT are real people and have nothing to do with omegas, alphas or betas. I’ve just written this with entertainment purposes and by no means have I intended to offend anybody.  
> ENGLISH IS NOT MY MOTHER TONGUE, SO ALLOW ME TO APOLOGIZE BEFOREHAND!

“Hyuckie, have you finished packing your clothes?”

“Yeah hyung.”

“Where’s your jacket? Don’t forget it!”

“It’s right here.”

“Have you taken your medicine? The doctor said that you must take one pill every night.”

“I was about to, hyung.”

“Have you thanked the doctors?”

“I did two hours ago.”

“And the nurses?”

Donghyuck has to close his eyes and take a deep breath. _Inhale and exhale, Donghyuck, inhale and exhale._ After internally counting up to ten, he opens his eyes again and a blur of faded pink hair moving from one side of the room to the other greets him.

He sighs. Sometimes he has to remind himself that that’s just how his hyung is, and that, well, if it wasn’t for his constant nagging, he would’ve surely forgotten the medicines and his jacket. Not that he would admit that out loud.

He smells him before he sees him. In his periphery, Donghyuck catches sight of Jaehyun leaning against the doorframe, eyes trained on their leader’s figure, who’s still moving around trying to leave the room as clean and tidy as humanly possible. The cinnamon scent is strong.

“You should take a photo hyung, it will last longer,” Donghyuck teases the Omega, who turns a violent shade of red when Taeyong looks up and catches him red-handed.

“I’m glad to see that you’re feeling better, you brat,” Jaehyun retorts, looking away from Taeyong who’s now looking at the floor with a deep pink blush tinting his cheeks.

Donghyuck wants to puke.

“Has manager-hyung arrived already?” Jaehyun nods and Donghyuck feels the knot in his stomach tightening.

“He’s waiting for us downstairs. Are you guys done packing?” He asks, looking at Taeyong this time.

“Yeah, we’re all done,” the leader answers, turning around to look at Donghyuck. “Are you sure that you’re not feeling dizzy? Overwhelmed? Sick?”

“Hyung, I’m fine, really! I’ve been perfectly fine for the past two days,” the vocal whines, taking one of the bags from his hyung’s hand. “Let’s just go.”

But ‘just go’ it’s not exactly what Donghyuck wants to do right now. After waking up two days ago, he had been forced to stay in bed for another two more days before the doctors deemed it safe for him to go home. It was boring, and the food was horrible, and he couldn’t sleep at night because the smell of chemicals and disinfectants was too strong. But the worst part was that he had nothing to do, and that meant that he had all the time in the world to dwell on his situation. Or more like worry himself to death.

To say that he’s nervous to meet a certain someone is the understatement of the century.

“You guys get going, I’ll go thank the doctors one last time,” Taeyong tells them, handing Jaehyun the other bag and disappearing down the hallway.

“I think the doctors are probably hiding from Taeyong at this point. Hyung has been constantly thanking them ‘one last time’ for the past five hours,” Donghyuck comments, following Jaehyun outside of the room.

The older chuckles. “It’s kind of charming.”

Donghyuck rolls his eyes. “Could you be more whipped?” That earns him a shove from the blond, but the younger regrets nothing.

They enter the elevator and ride it in silence: Donghyuck too preoccupied thinking about a thousand possible scenarios awaiting for him in the dorms, and Jaehyun too amused at the younger’s obvious distress.

For the last two days, the only thing that’s been on his mind has been what was going to happen to them. Donghyuck’s aware that their friendship wasn’t at its best before he presented since he chose to avoid Mark because of his feelings, and he can’t even imagine how things between them are going to be like after he kissed him and presented in front of him. He’s terrified of what Mark thinks, about how he’ll react once he sees him. In the end, as far as he knows Mark’s still mad at him and he has all the right in the world.

Donghyuck wants to bang his head against a wall.

“You know Donghyuck, Mark’s known for a while already. I thought that you may want to know that,” Jaehyun suddenly speaks up, and the younger looks at him confused.

The doors of the elevator slide open, and they start to walk through the hospital’s hall.

“What do you–?”

“I mean, the fact that you’re his soulmate,” Donghyuck’s insides churn. “Mark is… really oblivious for some things, but surprisingly perceptive when it comes to others.” There’s an ambiguous smile on Jaehyun’s lips and Donghyuck doesn’t know what to make out of it. “Can I ask you a question? I want an honest answer.”

Donghyuck shrugs. Honestly, he would like to further question Jaehyun about the fact that Mark knows that they’re soulmates, even though he already kind of expected it. He wants to know what he thinks, how he reacted, when he realized or if somebody told him. What if he’s disappointed? That’s a highly probable scenario and Donghyuck has the sudden urge to cry. Is that even possible? Aren’t soulmates supposed to be someone’s significant other? Donghyuck scoffs at himself. He should also be worried about other things as well, like for example, what will their company do since as far as he knows, there’s never been a case of soulmates inside of a same company, and obviously not inside of the same group either.

When he looks up at Jaehyun, the blond is waiting for him to answer. Donghyuck guesses that he kind of owes the older a reply for all the times he’s helped him, so he nods.

“What are you going to do when you see him?” Donghyuck doesn’t even have to think twice before answering since ever since he woke up, he’s been constantly thinking about the same thing. “I don’t know,” he simply states.

Jaehyun frowns at him, “That’s not an answer.”

“Well, you wanted me to be honest, and I honestly don’t know what to do.”

His hyung chuckles but Donghyuck can smell the other’s worry. It’s kind of burdensome, knowing that he’s making not just Jaehyun but all his hyungs (and probably the members of NCT Dream as well) worry so much, but Donghyuck can’t do anything about it. If presenting as an Omega and discovering that your best friend/crush is your soulmate in the span of three days is not enough of an excuse, he doesn’t know what it is.

Suddenly, he sees their manager entering through the hospital main gate looking for them. “We should get going,” Donghyuck murmurs, starting to walk towards their manager, but before he can make it far, Jaehyun’s stopping him.

“Look Hyuckie, I know that you’re scared now, but things will be alright. Your… friendship with Mark is one of the strongest ones I’ve ever seen.” Donghyuck doesn’t miss how his hyung hesitates before saying ‘friendship’ and it makes him feel embarrassed. “I know you can do this,” Jaehyun adds, his dimples showing when he smiles at him.

Donghyuck really, _really_ hopes so.

 

 

Except he can’t. “No. No I can’t do this.”

Taeyong and Jaehyun turn around, immediately looking at Donghyuck who’s frozen in the middle of the hallway in front of their dorms’ main door.

“Come again?” Taeyong asks.

“I can’t do it hyung. I can’t go in there,” he mutters, hands balled into fists.

The two older boys share a worried look before Jaehyun walks back to him, a comforting smile decorating his features. “Of course you can, Donghyuck.”

The younger shakes his head. He knows, he knows so damn well that he’s being difficult again, and he hates himself so much for it, but… the mere thought of crossing that door terrifies him, knowing very well that he will have to face all his worried friends. And Mark.

Even though he’s tried to avoid thinking about it, his mind automatically transports him back to that night, and he remembers how upset the rapper was at him, and how shocked he was when he kissed him. He’s not prepared for this.

“Hyuck, hey, look at me,” Taeyong demands, a gentle hand on his chin forcing Donghyuck to actually face the leader. His pine-ish scent instantly makes him feel safer. “We can come back later if that makes you feel better, but you know that you’ll have to face your problems sooner or–”

Suddenly, the main door to their dorms is hastily opened, and Donghyuck can’t register what’s going on before the air in his lungs is being forced out by a couple of arms hugging him really tight. Blinking twice, he looks down and he smiles fondly when a very familiar figure welcomes him.

“Hyung, we were so, so worried!” Chenle shouts, face buried on the slope of Donghyuck’s shoulder.

Returning the hug just as tight, he ruffles the Chinese’s hair, but before he has the time to answer him, another pair of arms sneak around his middle and Donghyuck turns around to face a worried-looking Jeno and a smiling Renjun.

“You’re finally back! What took you so long?” Renjun exclaims, beaming at him.

“Yeah, we we’re starting to think that you were pretending to feel sick just to get rid of us,” Jeno teases him, but Donghyuck knows the other well enough to see the worry buried in his eyes.

“As if that was even possible,” Donghyuck retorts, smiling at Jisung and Jaemin when they also join the spontaneous group hug.

For a moment, Donghyuck forgets about his whereabouts, simply enjoying his friends’ presence and teasing. The vocal loves all his members equally, but he’s always felt ‘freer’ around the NCT Dream members since they’re all around his age. As much as he hates to admit it, and despite the fact that they’ve never complained about his cheerful nature, he sometimes feels pressured to behave more maturely than he actually is around his hyungs. He just feels like he needs to act more like an adult when he’s with them (even though they act like dorks half of the time), and that’s something that he doesn’t have to do around the Dreamies. He’s just missed them a lot.

Suddenly, he smells a very citric scent. He doesn’t need to look up to know that it belongs to Winwin. Donghyuck finds the fact that the Chinese’s scent is so similar to Yuta’s fascinating. When Donghyuck does looks up though, he sees Jaehyun and Winwin (Taeyong has somehow disappeared without him noticing) smiling fondly at the vision of all of them hugging together. Aren’t they disgustingly sappy?

“Don’t hoard Donghyuck all for yourselves” the Chinese jokes, Korean still a little bit foreign in his tongue. “We’ve all missed him a lot.”

“Yeah, why don’t we all go inside? It’s kind of hot out here,” Jaehyun offers.

The moment that Donghyuck crosses the door to their dorm, multiple scents attack his nose. He feels slightly overwhelmed but welcomes his members’ affection anyways when they take turns to hug him. They joke around and tease him, and Donghyuck just laughs out loud, happy to be with his family again.

But everything happens too fast. He’s hugging Taeil when he catches a whiff of a very distinctive but painfully familiar scent. When he looks up, he first notices Taeyong, who wears a worried and anxious expression on his face. Their leader has never been able to hide his emotions well, or at least, that’s what Donghyuck thinks. The room has fallen silent, and he feels Taeil’s arms unwinding from his middle, leaving him alone in front of _him_.

Him being Mark, standing far away enough from Donghyuck for his scent to be subtle, but close enough for him to perceive it. He notices Taeyong’s hand on the younger’s shoulder as if holding him back, and Donghyuck feels butterflies flying in his stomach. When he finally has the courage to look directly at the rapper, he’s already looking at him, and Donghyuck hears himself gasp out loud. He’s exactly the same: round eyes, arched eyebrows, strong jaw, dark-brown hair… but something new about him makes Donghyuck’s breath hitch, something about him makes his skin itch, a sudden urge of doing _something_ burning deep inside his chest.

Mark’s gaze is almost unbearable, and Donghyuck wants to look away but his eyes seem to be glued to Mark’s ones. Donghyuck feels vulnerable, exposed. It’s like his piercing eyes are looking through him, it’s like Mark is able to read and know every single thought that crosses his mind, or every single emotion that makes his heart throb. And he finds himself torn, because a part of him wants nothing more than to walk towards the older and do that _something_ that it’s consuming his insides, but the other part of him wants to turn around and leave, to run away far enough for Mark’s scent to get lost, for his unreadable piercing eyes to disappear. But before he has the time to decide which side weighs more, he sees Mark moving. _Towards_ him.

His first instinct is to step back, but Mark seems to see it in his eyes because he crosses the distance between them in three long strides, leaving no time for Donghyuck to run away. Not that he would want to now anyways, since the older is standing close in front of him, towering over him, looking down at him. And Donghyuck feels himself getting lost in his dark eyes.

It’s ironic really, because it’s like the universe has been constantly sending Donghyuck hint after hint for him to realize that Mark is his soulmate, and the most glaringly obvious one is the fact that he’s always been able to smell Mark’s scent. It’s impossible for a werewolf to discern another person’s scent before presenting unless said person is your soulmate, so Donghyuck should’ve known, should’ve been able to understand that the reason behind all the times that he’s stolen Mark’s sweaters and jumpers to wear them himself, or all the times that he’s used the rapper’s shampoo and conditioner while showering, and all the occasions in which he’s woken up in the middle of the night with the sudden urge of needing to sleep in the same bed with Mark –close enough for the other to complain about being hot even during the coldest nights in winter–, it’s all been because he’s always been able to smell Mark’s scent, and because he’s always liked it, always made him feel safe. Because Mark for Donghyuck smells like home: a mixture between the smell of the earth after raining and the smell of the morning air after a whole night snowing.

Said smell engulfs him the moment that Mark hugs him tightly, a hand behind Donghyuck’s nape and another one on his lower back, pushing the younger close to him. Donghyuck breathes in deeply, unable to resist the urge to bring his nose to Mark’s neck, where his pulse is the strongest, unable to resist the need to close his eyes and bask in the safeness that is Mark’s scent, way stronger and clearer now that Donghyuck’s presented.

The vocal forgets about everything and everybody. Forgets about the fact that they’re still in the middle of the living room, surrounded by all his members, who are probably more than capable to see that Donghyuck is grabbing Mark’s hoodie as tight as he can in an attempt to get closer to him and let the rapper’s scent imprint his skin (even though they’re so close already that not even a sheet of paper would fit between their bodies at this point). In this moment, Donghyuck doesn’t care either about what their company is going to say to them, what the staff is going to make them do. He doesn’t think about what’s going to happen to their friendship, how things are going to change for them now that they both know that they’re soulmates. Right here and right now, Donghyuck just cares about Mark, he just cares about the way the mere touch of his hands make him shudder, about the way that their heartbeats seem to be synchronized, about how perfect and correct feels to _just feel_.

“Welcome back,” Mark suddenly whispers in his ear. It makes him get goose bumps all over his body, his voice doing wonders to his overridden senses. He’s always thought that Mark’s voice was attractive when rapping, charming when talking, but the way it sounds now, whispered directly in his ear, feels so intimate and _right_.

“I’m so s-sorry hyung, I’m s-so stupid. I don’t d-deserve this, I d-don’t deserve you…” A sob shakes Donghyuck’s body and he hates the fact that he’s crying again. For being a person that claims that he doesn’t like crying in front of people, he’s done exactly that so many times for the past four days that he feels like it doesn’t matter anymore. He should feel ashamed, because he knows that the other members are still there, he smells them faintly outside of the bubble that Mark’s scent and body has created around them, and he knows that they can hear what they’re saying, but he doesn’t feel embarrassed, a sudden need to spill everything that has been brewing in his chest since he woke up overpowering any other thought. “I’ve f-failed you, I turned my b-back on you when you n-needed me the most, I r-ran away, and now you’re stuck w-with me, and I just f-feel so bad, for e-everything that I’ve–”

“It doesn’t matter now, you haven’t failed me. You’re here, with me, and that’s more than enough. I’ve missed you so much, Hyuckie,” Mark’s hand is rubbing soothing circles on his back, lips peppering light kisses on Donghyuck’s hair, and something in the way Mark’s voice cracks in the end makes the vocal know that with that ‘I’ve missed you’, the rapper meant much more than just the days he’s spent in the hospital.

\--

The next three days are surprisingly uneventful. After the emotional reunion, everything seems to have returned back to normalcy, and even though that’s exactly what Donghyuck has been hoping for, he can’t help it but to feel rather… disappointed.

He shouldn’t complain really: they’ve been given a week off, he’s been adapting perfectly fine to his new heighten senses, and the members have been constantly paying attention to him (it didn’t take him more than half a day to discover the advantages of being an Omega, since almost everything he asked for, he would get).

But despite all of this, Donghyuck feels like there’s still something missing, and the voice in the back of his head keeps telling him that it has to do with the progress in his relationship with his soulmate, or rather the lack of it thereof.

Everything’s fine between them actually, and again, Donghyuck doesn’t have any reason to complain about. After sorting things out three days ago, Mark has been treating him as if nothing happened: he jokes around with him, fakes being mad at him when Donghyuck teases him too much, allows the vocal to constantly be all over him without pushing him away, and even forgets to chastise the younger when he overdoes it and stops calling him ‘hyung’. It’s really as if nothing has changed between them, as if these past six months have never existed, as if the fact that Donghyuck’s now an Omega and Mark an Alpha hasn’t had any impact in their relationship, as if being soulmates doesn’t change anything either. And maybe, Donghyuck suspects, maybe that’s exactly the problem.

Isn’t it ironic? He’s been worried for months about how things were going to be like between them, fearing and dreading the possibility of even the slightest variation in their relationship. And now, here he is, hoping for exactly the opposite: a change.

Because Donghyuck is not an idiot, and he’s definitely not blind. He’s noticed how Mark’s eyes linger on him longer than what it’s considered ‘normal’, he’s realized how touchy he’s become with him, when before, he would constantly complain about how Donghyuck wouldn’t stop clinging to him. Now, the rapper initiates skin-ship a lot of the times. And there’s also Mark’s scent, which has betrayed him a couple of times and given his ‘agitation’ away when being around Donghyuck. It’s not like Donghyuck is complaining, but he knows, he _feels_ that there’s a change, the thing is that they’re not acknowledging it.

A clear example of this is how they haven’t talked about the fact that they’re soulmates yet, and even though Donghyuck knows that they _need_ to, he can’t find it in himself to bring up the topic. He wants to think that it’s because they haven’t had time alone, but that’s a complete lie. All the hyungs went to a party yesterday and left Mark and Donghyuck behind claiming that despite the fact that the rapper was an adult now he was still a baby in their eyes, so he wasn’t allowed to join them. But something makes Donghyuck believe that it was their way of subtly giving them space and privacy to talk about their new status. But they didn’t. They simply spent the night playing videogames and making fun of each other.

But leave it to Fate to make Donghyuck swallow every single word (or thought).

It’s Sunday, and Donghyuck is playing games in his phone with Winwin waiting for Johnny and Taeil to finish cooking breakfast. Actually, it’s too late for them to be having breakfast, but the hyungs have woken up at 1 p.m. after a night out partying, and Donghyuck would never say no to sleeping in. They’re sitting at the kitchen table, completely immersed in the game, and Donghyuck wouldn’t admit it out loud, but Winwin’s skills when playing videogames in his phone are way better than his. Mark is pretending to help (pretending being the keyword since they all know, including the rapper himself, that the statement ‘Mark is absolutely fully capable’ is true with the exception of cooking), passing knives and ingredients when Taeil asks him to, and joking around in English with Johnny. Yuta is practically half-dead resting his forehead on the table, face-first and arms around his head to block the sunlight, so Donghyuck suspects that he drank too much yesterday. Doyoung is sitting next to the Japanese, a mug of coffee in one hand and a newspaper in the other, looking completely like the ‘head-of-family’ material he is.

And Taeyong and Jaehyun… well, to be honest, Donghyuck has no idea where the couple could be, but he doesn’t worry too much since it’s not weird for them to do this. Sometimes they disappear like this, suddenly vanishing from the dorms and coming back a couple of hours later, all smiles and blushing cheeks, trying to hide it from the members. But today, it seems like it’s not one of those days.

“This is wrong, it’s wrong at so many levels Jaehyun.” Donghyuck doesn’t know if he should be proud about the fact that after this stressful week he’s developed the ability to know when Taeyong is mad by just hearing him talk, so the moment he hears the leader’s voice when they enter the dorms, all the attention he was paying to the videogame vanishes. “They never listen to me, I’ve told them, I know my members, I know that this is going to be detrimental, and they… They just ignore me. Do they even care about the fact that I’m the head-alpha at all? That I’m supposed to decide what the best for my pack is?”

Taeyong is too agitated to keep it low, whispers loud enough for all the member to hear clearly, so when Donghyuck looks up to gauge the other’s reactions, every single one of his hyungs have stopped doing whatever they were doing and are completely focused on Jaehyun’s and Taeyong’s conversation.

“Hyung, calm down, there’s nothing we can do about it. You know that if you don’t tell them, they’ll come to pick them up anyways,” Jaehyun tries to reason with the Alpha. And if Donghyuck was worried before when he first heard Taeyong, he feels his appetite disappearing the moment he hears Jaehyun’s voice. The usually calm, down-to-earth and soft Jaehyun is clearly and definitely mad, his voice barely concealing his agitated state despite his words. 

Taeyong sighs out loud, and Donghyuck hears some rustling. He doesn’t know why but he pictures the older hugging Jaehyun, trying to calm him down even though he’s also notoriously mad. “You’re right, Jae. But it’s just so frustrating…”

“Should we tell them now?” Jaehyun asks, voice sounding muffled and confirming Donghyuck’s suspicions.

“I’m sure that they’re all hearing us anyways. I can smell your nerves guys,” Taeyong’s voice is not a whisper anymore, talking loud and clear, and directing his words at them.

When the couple enter the kitchen, stopping right at the doorframe, Taeyong’s eyes immediately set on Donghyuck first before moving to Mark at the other side of the room, and the younger knows that whatever they were talking about, it has to do with them.

He suddenly feels like puking despite the fact that there’s nothing in his stomach.

“What’s going on?” Yuta asks, still holding his head in his hands but visibly way more awake than before.

“The Management Team wants to talk to Mark and Donghyuck about their new situation now that Donghyuck’s presented,” Taeyong explains, voice eerily calm compared to when he first entered the dorms.

“Excuse me? Are they seriously going to do this again?” Johnny speaks up after turning off the stove, walking closer to where Jaehyun and Taeyong are. His voice also shocks Donghyuck, who’s not used to seeing the normally laid-back Johnny all worked up.

 _Again?_ Donghyuck’s confused. What is ‘this’? And when has it happened before?

“What are they going to do, hyung? They can’t do anything, right?” Doyoung is asking now, concern showing clearly in the way his voice wavers.

“I don’t know. They haven’t told me anything apart from the fact that they’re going to come to pick them up today, but–”

“Taeyong, no way. This can’t happen again for god’s sake!” Johnny says.

“What’s ‘this’?” Donghyuck can’t help but ask. He’s feeling so lost right now that he’s starting to get mad at his hyungs. Why is nobody telling him what’s going on? Why are they talking about this as if he and Mark aren't even in the room?

 _Mark_. The vocal looks at him and he’s taken aback when the other looks quite… mad? Donghyuck wants to ask him, wants the rapper to look at him and tell him that they’re exaggerating, but the other is completely focused on the hyung’s conversation.

They completely ignore Donghyuck’s question.

“You think I don’t know that Johnny? I’ve been arguing with them since Donghyuck entered the hospital. At least I’ve been able to delay it until today!” Taeyong snaps at the American.

The room is starting to feel suffocating with all the member’s emotions permeating the air and Donghyuck feels dizzy, not used to being able to smell it so clearly.

“Are they really going to force the talk on them? Why aren’t they giving them more time to figure it out themselves?” Yuta asks.

“Three days is not enough! C’mon hyung, there must be something, anything that you can do to stop them!” Doyoung exclaims.

“Hey guys, I get it, I’m worried and mad myself, but Taeyong-hyung has tried everything possible, okay? I was there, they weren’t listening at all. We should be happy that hyung persuaded them enough for them to give us three days,” Jaehyun suddenly steps in, a hand resting on the leader’s shoulder in a protective stance.

“Thanks Jaehyunnie,” Taeyong whispers to him. “Look guys, let’s be real here, they can’t do anything drastic. Mark and Donghyuck are soulmates after all.”

Donghyuck drops the phone. He shouldn’t be surprised really, it’s obvious that everybody knows that they’re soulmates. He’s talked about it with Jaehyun before and he knows for sure that Yuta and Doyoung know it as well since he heard them when he was still in the hospital, but Donghyuck can’t help it but to feel uncomfortable after Taeyong said it out loud. None of the members have brought up the topic since the younger came back, nobody has mentioned it, not even once, and hearing it there, out in the open, affects Donghyuck more than he expected.

“You’re right,” Johnny agrees, “but it doesn’t change the fact that they can try to control it.”

“But they can’t do that hyung! They can’t control something like this!” Doyoung exclaims.

“Oh believe me, they did it with Jaehyun and Taeyong. What makes you think that it’s not going to happen again?”

What? What happened to Jaehyun and Taeyong? Donghyuck’s head is suddenly hurting a lot and his nose feels stuffy, he can’t breathe well.

“This has nothing to do with that, Johnny. It’s a completely different case,” Taeyong practically sneers. His voice sounds dark, angry, and something tells Donghyuck that whatever they’re referring to, it’s struck a chord.

The Alpha shifts, standing slightly in front of Jaehyun to cover him with his body, and the Omega allows him, eyes casted down looking at the floor.

“Tell me how this is different, Taeyong, I don’t see it,” Yuta suddenly says. “This is exactly the same. It’s something that it can’t be controlled, there are emotions involved, you can’t actually choose who you fall in love with–”

“Stop it!” Winwin suddenly shouts, startling all the members. The room falls dead silent, and everybody turns around to look at the Beta. “That’s enough, you have no tact at all!”

“Winwin is right guys. I think you’re forgetting that Mark and Donghyuck are right here,” Taeil says. The Chinese and Taeil have remained quiet during the whole ordeal, silently observing the others argue, but Donghyuck is so, so grateful for Winwin and Taeil’s intervention.

What Taeil has just said seems to be true because Donghyuck sees how his hyungs immediately send him apologetic glances. “You’re both right. I’m sorry Mark, Donghyuck, it’s just that–”

“When?” Mark interrupts Johnny, voice firm and expression unreadable.

“Pardon?”

“When are they going to pick us up,” he asks Taeyong.

“Huh… at five p.m.”

Donghyuck looks at the clock hanging on the opposite wall, and he sees that it’s three p.m. They still have two hours left.

Without thinking it twice, he stands up. He’s mad, he’s confused, and he’s scared, so he doesn’t even pay attention to the others when he directs his next words at Mark, offering the rapper a hand. “Hyung, I need fresh air. Are you coming?”

Mark looks at him and his expression is one of relief. At first it confuses Donghyuck but he sadly realizes that he was probably thinking that he was going to close off to him again. Smiling at him, Mark grabs his hand.

“Yeah, let’s get out of here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope that you guys liked it! I would appreciate a lot any kind of review, I really, really like reading your opinions about the story. You are the BEST readers ever!  
> Sadly, I can't asure you that I'll be able to update soon since I'm starting college again in a week, and also my part-time job... So yeah, I'll probably be very busy. But I'll try my best to post the next chapter as soon as I can (I've already written part of it).  
> Love you all~


	4. No matter what

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG I can’t believe I’m back. First of all, I owe you all a huge apology for taking so long to update this story. Life’s been a busy bitch this last year and adult life has hit me like a train. Not enough of an excuse but still the harsh reality of growing up… Anyways, I don’t want to make this introduction super long since this is the last chapter and I’ve changed it so many times that I feel like I need to post it before I end up messing the plot. I just hope that you enjoy it and that you don’t hate me too much for abandoning you for so long… ENJOY!!!
> 
> DISCLAIMER: This story is obviously and completely fictitious, the characters here are fictitious as well since we all know very well that NCT are real people and have nothing to do with omegas, alphas or betas. I’ve just written this with entertainment purposes and by no means have I intended to offend anybody.  
> ENGLISH IS NOT MY MOTHER TONGUE, SO ALLOW ME TO APOLOGIZE BEFOREHAND!

Mark is in the middle of one of his ‘I’m-nervous-but-I-don’t-want-to-admit-it’ rants, it’s too hot outside and the streets are deserted. They live in the outskirts of Seoul, so they don’t really have to worry about people recognizing them, especially not now when the sun is shining bright in the sky and everybody is resting at home to avoid suffering the scorching heat.

Donghyuck has stopped listening to the older long ago, too focused on keeping his breaths even and calming down his heart. He was worried about Mark noticing his nervousness at first, since he’s sure that right now, he reeks of anxiousness, but the rapper is exuding nervousness as well so he guesses that there’s no point in hiding it. It kind of makes him feel better to know that the other is having a hard time too.

They’re walking down the street without a specific destination set on mind, their feet moving on their own and transporting them to a run-down building that has definitely seen better days. Donghyuck guesses that it was an ice-cream shop before, the numerous posters and signals advertising new flavors and sizes a blunt hint. The windows are shattered so the vocal can see some bottles of soju scattered on the floor and a couple of graffiti on the walls.

“… so yeah, I told him that I would definitely fix it. But ‘ruthless’ sounds good, right? I don’t think that-” They’re about to walk by when Donghyuck suddenly stops, making Mark come to a halt as well. “Donghyuck?”

“Let’s go inside.”

“Where?”

“There,” Donghyuck answers, pointing at the crooked and broken wooden door with an old ‘closed’ signal hanging on it.

“ _There_? Why would you want to go in there?” Mark questions, definitely taken aback by his sudden request.

“It’s too hot, I’m going to faint if I stay outside for another minute. And it’s an ice-cream shop, it must be cool inside.”

“ _Was_ an ice-cream shop. We could go to an actual ice-cream shop if you want to,” but Mark’s words fall to deaf ears because Donghyuck is already pushing the door inwards and entering the building. “Whatever…”

The interior is as deteriorated as the exterior, but surprisingly, there are some chairs and benches inside. Donghyuck suspects that the place has served before as a shelter for homeless or teenagers aiming to cause trouble, but he’s happy to ignore it if that means escaping from the punishing sun for a while.

They sit down in silence, the only noise coming from the outside is that of a stray dog barking his life away. Donghyuck shifts around on his seat while Mark plays with the hem of his shirt, they both know what they have to do now, they both know that they don’t have any more time left and that they must face their new reality once and for all. But it doesn’t make it easier; Donghyuck can’t find it in himself to open up his mouth, struggling to come up with a way to start a conversation that they both do not want to have.

“I don’t know how to start,” the younger blurts out, avoiding direct eye-contact with the rapper.

“Yeah, this sucks,” Mark agrees.

The silence falls upon them once again, and Donghyuck thinks that this must be one of the rare occasions in which he feels like being silent around Mark. What an unfortunate coincidence.

“Why don’t we ask each other questions? I don’t know about you, but I do have a lot,” Mark suggests, passing a pebble he’s found on the floor from one of his hands to the other.

“Okay, me first! What do you think about the theory that says that Michael Jackson is not dead?”

“Donghyuck… You know what I meant,” Mark chastises him.

And he does know, but he tends to say stupid things when he’s nervous, and God help him, he’s bloody nervous right now.

“Yeah, sorry… You want to go first?”

“Uh… Yeah? Let’s start with a simple one.” The rapper remains quiet for a long while, and Donghyuck is tempted to break the silence again when the other finally speaks up. “Does it bother you that I turned out to be an Alpha?”

He should’ve been first.

“Is that supposed to be a simple one?”

“Well, considering our situation, I think it is.”

Donghyuck sighs out loud. “It doesn’t anymore.”

“ _Anymore_?”

“Yeah… I mean, I kind of guessed it, the fact that you were going to be an Alpha. So it didn’t really take me by surprise, but… I guess it was the fact that I was going to become an Omega, and all that soulmate bullshit of you triggering my presentation, but at first I couldn’t stand being near you. It was too overwhelming.” Donghyuck feels so stupid saying all these things out loud. He’s kept them for himself for so long that it feels wrong to share these thoughts with another person, especially with Mark.

“I guess it makes sense…”

“What about me being an Omega?” He asks back, eyes still fixated on the graffiti on the opposite wall.

Mark sighs out loud before answering. “I’m going to be honest with you… I actually like it. A lot.”

This time Donghyuck falls silent because he’s so surprised that he doesn’t know what to say. _He likes it?_

“Can you… elaborate more?”

Mark squares up. “I like your scent better now. Don’t get me wrong, I liked it before, but it’s so much richer now, so clear, it makes me feel confident, safer. And you look… good, I mean, being an Omega suits you, you look radiant or something. And I guess it’s all some chemistry shit making me feel like this…  But it just feels right, I really like you being an Omega. So no, it doesn’t make me uncomfortable, it never did.”

The room falls silent for the nth time and this time Mark is the one that breaks it.  “Donghyuck?”

“Huh?”

“Say something.”

“When did you discover it? That I was your soulmate, I mean.”

“Hey that’s not fair, that’s two questions in a row,” Mark complains.

“Jaehyun-hyung told me that you discovered it way before I presented, but you never said anything to me. Why?” Donghyuck says, completely ignoring Mark’s complaints.

“Would you have said something if you’d discovered before me?”

“How did you know that I didn’t know?”

“Because I asked you.”

Did he? They’ve talked about crushes an awful amount of times before, they’re best friends after all, but Donghyuck doesn’t remember talking about soulmates with Mark.

“When?” He asks, unable to remember when they had that conversation.

“When we first met.”

Donghyuck gapes. He’s so shocked that he turns around to look at the rapper, who’s now looking at the floor. Does that mean that Mark has known ever since they met?

“Do you mean that–?”

“Yeah, I knew that you were my soulmate the first time I saw you,” Mark confesses, eyes still glued to the floor.

“Wait. How? Why?” Donghyuck is so shocked that he doesn’t even realize that he’s grabbing Mark’s shirt, making the older look at him.

“I can’t explain how I felt, I just knew. I’ve never been able to describe it, not even to Taeyong-hyung at that time.”

“You told hyung before me? That’s why Jaehyun knew as well?” Donghyuck asks, an ugly feeling of betrayal spreading through his heart. Why didn’t he tell him first?

“Donghyuck, I was fucking 13, I didn’t even know that I liked boys before meeting you. But I guess that it never was about liking girls or boys…”

The vocal doesn’t know what to say. _Again._

It just makes no sense. Why did Mark realize the first time they met? Why didn’t he?

“I asked you, the second day, when we moved to the same dorm,” Mark keeps going after he realizes that Donghyuck is not going to say anything. “You were telling me about your parents, about Busan, about your dreams of becoming a singer. You were talking so fast that I didn’t get half of what you said. You then realized and you asked me if I had any question and–”

“And you asked me if I believed in soulmates. And I said no,” Donghyuck finishes.

He does remember now, Mark’s explanation transporting him five years back in time. He remembers everything, even the rapper’s sad and disappointed expression when he heard his reply. He didn’t understand back then, but he does now.

“I’m sorry.”

“What are you apologizing for?” Mark asks, an ambiguous smile decorating his features.

“All those nights, when I talked to you for hours about my crushes. All the times I’ve laughed at Jaehyun-hyung and Taeil-hyung for believing in soulmates…” Donghyuck realizes horrified, talking more to himself than to Mark. “I’m the shittiest soulmate in the world.”

“It’s okay, you didn’t know,” Mark comforts him. “You know now.”

They lock eyes and Donghyuck shudders physically.

“Yeah, I know now.”

And somehow, he feels like deep inside his heart, he’s known for way longer, because all those nights, when he rambled about his crushes, he always omitted one thing: the person he loved, his confidant himself.

He might not have realized since the beginning that Mark was his soulmate, but he always knew that what he felt for the older was more than just friendship, he just decided to ignore it until it was unbearable.

“That’s why you kissed me that night? Because Jaehyun-hyung told you that I knew we were soulmates?” Mark suddenly asks, looking Donghyuck straight in the eyes, as if looking for an answer.

He feels himself blushing at the memory of himself kissing Mark that night back in the studio, but he doesn’t avert his eyes when he replies back. “No, I didn’t know then.”

Mark looks disappointed when he asks: “Was it because of your heat, then?”

“Yes and no,” he answers. “I had the courage to kiss you because of my heat, but I did it because I really wanted to.”

“You really wanted to kiss me?”

“I’ve been _really_ wanting to kiss you for a long time actually,” he finally confesses.

He’s not even embarrassed when he says that out loud because he finally feels like he can  breathe freely after all these years keeping his feelings to himself.   

“If that’s true, why would you stop with just one?” Mark asks him.

“That’s actually a good question.”

Before he has the chance to react, Mark’s lips are already on top of his own.

The kiss starts slowly, softly. They both take their time, wanting to enjoy each other’s lips after all these years of self-restraint. Donghyuck feels Mark’s hands cradle his jaw, deepening the kiss, and he finds his own hands entangling with the rapper’s hair.

They get lost in the kiss, each other’s scent permeating the air, creating a bubble around them that isolates them from the outside. The need to get closer and to taste more of each other’s lips is the only thing that matters for them at the moment.

Donghyuck feels light-headed, his body strangely relaxed and tensed at the same time. His heart pounds against his ribcage, a tiny fraction of himself wondering if Mark can hear it. He just feels like time has stopped around them, as if all these years of silent suffering have built up to this moment.

The longer they kiss, the stronger the need to get closer to Mark becomes. Without thinking it twice, he gets on his knees, one leg moving above Mark’s ones to finally straddle the rapper. Something in his head tells him that he’s being too bold, that he should take it easy, but by the way Mark’s hands grasp his hips tight to pull him closer, he knows that the rapper doesn’t mind the change of position.

Donghyuck rests his hands on Mark’s nape, fingers rubbing soft patterns on the other’s heated skin, copying the circles that the rapper’s hands are drawing on his hips. And it doesn’t take long for Mark’s tongue to lick Donghyuck’s lips, asking for permission to enter his mouth, to deepen the kiss even more if that’s possible. It doesn’t even take a second for the vocal to grant him the entrance, his own tongue meeting the rapper’s eagerly.

Donghyuck knows that Mark had a girlfriend while he was in Canada –‘nothing serious, a kid’s-relationship kind of thing’ as the rapper would describe it himself–, but he himself has never kissed anybody before. Despite of this, the kiss doesn’t feel awkward, it doesn’t feel weird, it just feels natural. And good, _very good_.

They kiss and kiss and kiss, not stopping even once, breathing through their noses, intoxicating each other with their own scents, turning their heads from time to time to experiment with different angles. It’s like they want to make up for all the time they’ve lost during the last five years, pouring all their frustrations on the kiss.

But Mark’s phone suddenly startles them both, effectively forcing them to break apart.

Donghyuck realizes then how breathless he is, embarrassingly gasping for air while standing up on wobbly legs to allow Mark to take his phone out of his jeans.

It’s not until he sees their manager’s name on the screen that reality dawns on him, hitting him hard like a train. Mark’s hands are shaky when he presses the green button, immediately pressing the phone to his ear.

“Hyung?” Mark responds.

 

On their way to the SM headquarters, they’re both silent. Their manager sends them glances through the rear mirror from time to time, probably surprised by their linked hands.

Before leaving the abandoned ice-cream shop, Mark grabbed the younger’s hand tightly, telling him that he didn’t care about what the Management Team had to say to them, that they wouldn’t be able to separate them. His words made Donghyuck feel warm and confident for a while but, when they stepped out of the car, the high and imposing skyscraper with SM’s logo on top of it towering over them, made all of his anxiousness come back at once. Mark’s probably able to smell it so he tightens his grip on Donghyuck’s hand, pulling the younger closer to him while walking towards the entrance.

The atmosphere is tense when their manager tells them to wait outside of the Management Team’s office, with just a ‘you don’t need to worry, it’s just a procedure’ before leaving them behind. Alone.

Donghyuck feels small, too young and naïve, suddenly wishing for their hyungs to be there with them. He glances at Mark, sitting next to him, hand still holding his sweaty one. He looks determined, fearless, and Donghyuck can’t smell a single tinge of nervousness on his scent. Taking a deep breath, he tries to calm himself as well. Mark’s right: it doesn’t matter what they say, his feelings for Mark are not going to change, neither is the fact that they’re soulmates. He can do this.

The office door suddenly opens, a woman wearing a black tuxedo waves at them, signaling them to enter. Mark stands up right away, pulling Donghyuck behind him and walking towards the office.

The room is smaller than Donghyuck expected. The air conditioner keeps the office cool, too cold for the vocal’s taste. There’s just a long, rectangular table for 6 people in there, three of the seats already occupied.

Donghyuck stares at the three of them, all on their mid-40s probably. There’s the woman that told them to enter, and two more men, wearing formal clothes as well. They’re smiling and Donghyuck notes that they probably want to make them relax. Good try with that.

“Good evening, Donghyuck, Mark,” the woman starts. “My name is Sunghee, this is Jihyung and this is Dongyul. We’re part of the Management Team and we’re here today to talk about your situation. First of all, we want to congratulate you on your presentation, Donghyuck, as well as we want to express our happiness. Nowadays it’s really rare to find soulmates, so having a couple under our own company is definitely an honor,” the woman continues.

Donghyuck almost scoffs at her words, they sound so fake… He doesn’t want to hear a ton of meaningless words from someone that he’s never seen in his life before. He knows that that’s not what they’re here for, so he wishes that they could cut down with the formalities.

“We want to make clear that we’re here to discuss a couple of things with you, nothing serious. We just want to make sure that everything turns out alright and that your relationship develops without any problems,” the man called Jihyung says.

Donghyuck almost believes them when, after half an hour, all that they’ve talked about has been basically some technicalities about how soulmates work and how they’re supposed to react if they feel like there’s something wrong with their bodies. But honestly, nothing’s new for the vocalist so far, since he was told all of this in class when they were learning the different kinds of possible pairings in the werewolf realm. Donghyuck doesn’t know if it was out of instinct, but he always paid more attention to the lectures that had something to do with soulmates, so he feels that he’s in safe territory for now.

That changes quite fast.

“Okay, so now that we’re done with all the theory, let’s move on into more… _practical_ stuff.” The woman’s voice is nasal and high-pitched, a horrible combination in Donghyuck’s personal opinion, but he has to give it to her since the younger can see that she’s putting a lot of effort to seem nice. “Donghyuck, I’ve been told that you’ve been taking medication since you got discarded from the hospital, am I right?”

Donghyuck nods and tries to avoid Mark’s questioning stare. He didn’t tell him, that’s true, but he thought that it was not necessary. Apparently, said pill was more important than Donghyuck first thought.

“Do you know what the medication is for?”

“Yeah, the doctor said something about… a-about suppressing my heats,” Donghyuck replies back.

Donghyuck knows that he’s blushing. Talking about heats in front of Mark is not his ideal scenario of spending the afternoon, but he swallows his embarrassment after clearing out his throat. He already prepared himself for this kind of question, in the end, heats and ruts and all that stuff that Donghyuck’s preferred to push to the back of his mind for when he grows older, are, nevertheless, a really important part of the life of a werewolf. He can’t simply ignore it, but it doesn’t mean that it makes the conversation any less awkward.

“That’s right, dear, but you have to be really careful with it. It’s not the typical pill that we usually provide to our beloved Omega artists. Actually, it’s been specifically crafted for soulmates couples. You know what I mean with this, Donghyuck?”

The younger shakes his head. The doctor didn’t tell him anything about the pill being different from the ones every Omega takes, so he feels a little bit taken aback.

“Well dear, it means that you have to pay extra caution to them since they’re harder to get, you can’t buy them in regular drugstore. Do you understand it? Also, it’s extremely important that you take them every single night, if you were to forget even a single dose, you would go into heat after just a few hours. You wouldn’t want that, right?” The woman explains to Donghyuck.

“Why?” Mark suddenly asks, slightly startling Donghyuck who’s forgotten about his presence. “I mean, I’ve seen Jaehyun-hyung and Ten-hyung forgetting to take the pills more than once before and they’ve never went into heat.”

“Good question, Mark,” one of the men answers. “Soulmates are different to regular werewolves in more than one aspect, and the intensity and frequency of heats and ruts vary in great degree.”

Without further ado, the man opens up a folder that Donghyuck didn’t even realize was there in the first place, extracting a thin stack of papers from its interior. Choosing one of the documents, he turns it around and deposits it back on the table, facing Mark and Donghyuck this time.

The man named Dongyul suddenly speaks up. “As you must already know, normal Omegas and Alphas go into a heat or a rut respectively approximately every five months. Normally, when living in a pack, the cycles tend to coincide since, back then, when we had more of a wolf than a human, ruts and heats served to ensure the survival of the species. Nowadays, they’re just vestiges of the way smaller percentage of wolf we have in us, so they’re weaker and also not necessary.”

“But the soulmates’ case is different. According to scientific research, soulmates experiment stronger and more frequent heats and ruts, have heightened senses and are way more dependent on each other than a normal mated couple would be,” Jihyung explains. “Meaning that you guys are more susceptible to each other, and consequently, more prone to lose control.”

“Wait, what? What do you mean?” Donghyuck suddenly interrupts.

The way in which the three adults exchange looks with each other at Donghyuck’s question makes his stomach churn.

“He means that soulmates are way more prone to mating and claiming, especially during heats and ruts. The need you would feel to mate and claim each other if, for example, you went into a heat and triggered Mark’s rut, would be unbearable,” Sunghee clarifies. “You guys know that that’s unthinkable in the idol industry, and in your case in particular… Well, you’re not only idols, you’re bandmates as well, and Donghyuck here is still a minor so mating and claiming are completely off-limits, being soulmates or not.”

The mortification is real.

Almost instantly, a mental image of them specifically doing those things pops up in his head and Donghyuck wants to kill himself for that. He smells his embarrassment clogging the small room and wishes that the floor could open up and swallow him all. If talking about heats and ruts was already bad, talking about claiming and mating was a fucking nightmare for him.

The way in which the woman talks about _it_ as if it was an everyday thing to do makes the situation even worse, and Donghyuck has the urge to get up and run out of the room with how embarrassed he feels at the moment. Especially taking into account that they shared their “first” kiss (he refuses to acknowledge their kiss in the studio as their first one) an hour ago.

Just to make it even worse, the woman speaks up again just to point out the obvious. “I’m sorry for making you uncomfortable, dear, it’s a sensitive topic, I’m aware of that, but it’s crucial for what we have to discuss today.”

Mark coughs out loud, effectively catching the woman’s attention. Donghyuck can smell embarrassment on him as well but he’s definitely handling it better than him.

“Could we _actually_ discuss whatever we have to discuss, then? We haven’t been told what we’re supposed to talk about and _that_ is making us uncomfortable as well,” Mark urges.

The man named Dongyul laughs out loud at Mark’s words. “Alphas and their way of passively-aggressively trying to take things under their control… Don’t worry Mark, there isn’t much to discuss.”

“There are some conditions that you have to agree with by signing this contract. It’s crucial that you do so because this is a way for us to ensure that we can make this exceptional situation the most ordinary possible. Also, you might not have thought about it, but your relationship could negatively affect NCT as a whole, so there needs to be some limits to protect the whole group from possible scandals,” Dongyul explains, pointing at the paper laid in front of them

Without stopping for a second, Sunghee reads out loud the contents enumerated in the paper. “These are the conditions that you must agree with: 1) Mating and claiming are completely forbidden, to avoid so, Donghyuck will take a suppressant every night to prevent going into heat and triggering Mark’s rut, also he’ll be required to keep a record of it; 2) As soulmates, it’s normal for you to develop romantic feelings for each other, and while our intentions are not to prohibit or stop it, any sign of public affection or display of typical soulmates’ behavior is to be avoided in public to prevent possible scandals or speculations; 3) From now on, you’ll not be able to share a room together, neither in the dorms nor in hotels, just to avoid… ‘risky’ situations; 4) To prevent this situation from becoming public, it’s completely forbidden to talk about this topic with outsiders under any circumstances, this includes your family as well; 5) And lastly, to make sure that the aforementioned rules aren’t violated, any use of alcohol is prohibited for the both of you.”

Donghyuck doesn’t have time to think about what the woman has just said before he and Mark are handled a pen. “I need you to sign here and here, and then here as well, and we’ll be done.”

For a moment, the room falls silent. Donghyuck stares at the document in front of him and tries to reread what’s enumerated in the paper, but the words suddenly seem to mingle together in a blurry mess and he can’t make anything out of it. Forcing himself to breathe in, he lets go of the pen.

“Do we have any other option?” He asks, voice surprisingly more stable than he feels at the moment. The situations is starting to surpass him.

But it seems that the man named Dongyul is definitely unpleased with his question.

“With all due respect, Donghyuck, I feel like the company is being very generous with you, especially if we take into account how much is at risk. The mere fact that you’re allowed to have a “romantic relationship” behind closed doors –or however you want to call it–, it’s already something that could cause us a lot of problems. We’re just asking you to agree to basic conditions for the sake of the group’s well-being. So no, there’s no other option. I think that you’re being too selfish right now.”

Taken aback at the man’s sudden harshness, Donghyuck unconsciously recoils back and simultaneously shifts closer to Mark’s side. He didn’t intend to trigger the man, neither did he want to be disrespectful but he feels like everything is too sudden, and he definitely needs some time to properly think about it.

As if reading his mind, the woman decides to step in when Mark extends his hand to grab Donghyuck’s protectively and bares his teeth at the older man. Donghyuck’s never seen Mark behave like this before and he’s starting to feel really stressed. “Okay, let’s do one thing. We’ll leave you alone for 15 minutes for you to read the contract attentively and to talk about it. Then we’ll come back and proceed with the meeting. Does that sound okay for you?”

Donghyuck can’t find his voice to respond, still visibly shaken up because of the whole situation, so Mark’s the one that thanks the woman and bows good-bye when the three of them exit the room.

“Donghyuck, breathe in,” the older orders him, forcing Donghyuck to look at him by holding his face between his palms.

Without thinking it twice, Donghyuck shifts closer to Mark, resting his forehead on the older’s shoulder, inhaling and exhaling through his nose slowly. “I’m just… this is too much.”

“Yeah, I know. It’s been a rough week.”

“Tell me about it, I’m the one who presented.”

The rapper laughs out loud at Donghyuck’s sassiness in this situation, proceeding to wrap his arms around Donghyuck’s body and hold him close to allow the younger to breathe in his scent at ease. Mark knows that it will unconsciously make him feel better because of them being soulmates.

“You know, when I realized that you didn’t know that we were soulmates, I thought that it was actually a good thing.” When Donghyuck, confused, tries to move back to look at the older’s face, Mark wraps a hand on his nape and forces him back down on his shoulder. “I thought that it was a good thing because I didn’t believe that we stood a chance.”

Mark’s voice is as sad as the words he’s saying, and Donghyuck feels emotional all over again. “I thought that in our situation, with us being idols and bandmates, we wouldn’t have any chance to be together without having to give up our dreams.”

“That’s really sad, Mark Lee,” Donghyuck murmurs against the older’s neck, breathing in deeply when he picks up the bitter smell of sadness in Mark’s usually fresh scent.

“It is, yeah… But they’ve given us a chance, Donghyuck, we can have something resembling to a normal relationship now, and I’m really grateful for that.”

“I know, I’m… grateful too, but at the same time I think that everything is so unfair. We are meant to be, we shouldn’t need to hide or sign stupid contracts. There shouldn’t be any limitations in something so personal.”

Donghyuck agrees with Mark to some extent, but he does feel like their relationship is something that their company shouldn’t intervene in. At the same time, he guesses that he gave up complete freedom when he decided to make his dreams of being a singer come true and became an idol.

“I actually think that these limitations are necessary,” Mark contradicts him and Donghyuck can’t help it but to feel surprised at his words. 

“Why? It’s so stupid! We’re not some hormone-ridden and incapable of self-restraint teenagers anymore!”

“Actually, yes, you’re still technically a teenager even though you already presented,” Mark corrects him, amusement tangible in his voice.

“I’ll be officially an adult in a couple of months!” Donghyuck feels the need to add.

“I know that, but I still agree with them. These limitations are definitely necessary, so I don’t mind signing the contract. The conditions might be a little bit… restricting, but I think that they will do more good than bad.”

“I don’t agree! Are you serious hyung? We’re not even going to be able to tell our families about this. They didn’t even tell us until when are we supposed to follow these stupid rules. We’re soulmates, for god’s sake!” Donghyuck exclaims frustrated, trying, and failing once again, to free himself from Mark’s hold.

“Donghyuck, when you went into heat the day you presented I thought that I was going crazy. Literally.” Mark’s voice is suddenly very serious, arms tightening around the younger to prevent him from moving away. “The moment I smelled you I completely lost control of myself, I wasn’t me… The only thing I could think about was you, and how well you smelled and how much I wanted to… t-to _claim_ you. It’s so embarrassing to say this out loud, but I’m being serious Donghyuck. You were too out of it to feel what I was feeling but I understand completely what they meant when they said that if we were to trigger each other, the need would be overwhelming.”

Suddenly, Donghyuck remembers clearly Mark’s deep growl when he fainted inside of the bathroom the day he presented. He also remembers dreaming of bright blue eyes when he was unconscious. He knows now that that’s how soulmates’ eyes look like when their mate triggers them and they lose control. He knows now that that’s how Mark’s eyes must’ve looked like the day he went into a rut because of him.

“What about us not being able to share a room ever again? Or not being able to drink alcohol for the rest of our lives?”

“Well, I’m sure that we can think of a way to dodge these two conditions somehow. Don’t you think so, Hyuckie?” Donghyuck snickers at that, moving up to give Mark a short but intense kiss. “Who would’ve thought that goodie-two-shoes Mark Lee would be such a rebel?”

 

After signing the contract they were given the permission to go back to the dorms and, surprisingly, they didn’t get bombarded with questions the moment they crossed the door. Later that night, when Donghyuck and Winwin were doing the dishes together, the Chinese told him that their manager had explained everything to Taeyong –including the contract’s content–, and that their leader had told them about it, asking the members to give Mark and Donghyuck some space about the whole situation. Although he was embarrassed about his members knowing of the contract’s conditions, Donghyuck was grateful overall.

In less than a week his life has changed so much that he still couldn’t wrap his mind around it. He needed to think about a lot of things… He needed to adjust to his new condition as an Omega and learn to adapt to his heightened senses, as well as to get used to the need of taking suppressants every night. He also needed to get used to his new relationship with Mark, his _soulmate._

Things have definitely changed between them but, for the first time since Donghyuck presented, he founds that he’s not bothered by it. Everything that was wrong between them disappeared, and Donghyuck feels like a huge weight has been lifted up from his shoulders.

A future with Mark Lee as his soulmate definitely doesn’t look bad at all.

“What are you thinking about?” Mark nudges him, voice heavy with sleep and eyes squinting up at him from Donghyuck’s lap.

They were watching a movie alone in the living room –definitely taking advantage of the hyungs giving them some space and allowing them to hoard the TV all for themselves– and it didn’t take long for the rapper to get sleepy. It definitely took Donghyuck by surprise when the older got all cuddly with him and willingly rested his head in the younger’s lap. It’s well-known that Mark isn’t a fan of skinship, and although he would usually let Donghyuck have his way, he’s normally not the one initiating physical contact. Donghyuck will need to get used to this new side of Mark as well.

“I’m thinking about how sad it is that there’s people out there that still believes that you’re cool and ‘fully-capable’, when in reality you’re the nerdiest person alive. They definitely haven’t seen your swaggy pink zebra pajamas at all…”

“Hey! Take that back! It was my mom’s gift!”

Donghyuck bursts out laughing, effectively dodging Mark’s attempt at grabbing him while signing ‘sing sang sung’ at the top of his lungs. He can hear Mark running behind him so he dashes towards the bathroom’s door to get away from him. The vocal makes it just in time before Mark catches up with him, closing the door on the other’s nose.

“Open the door, you brat!” Mark exclaims while pounding on the door.

They’re both laughing and Donghyuck rests his head against the wall, feeling dizzy from all the running. In the mirror’s reflection he can see that there’s a huge smile plastered on his face. He’s just happy to see that there are thing that will never change between them.

When Donghyuck starts fearing that their hyungs are going to get tired of their antics, he opens the door to let the older in.

“I swear to god, how did I end up having such a brat as my soulmate?” Mark says to him, walking towards the vocal with a teasing smirk on his lips.

“I know right, you’re so lucky…” Donghyuck wraps his arms around the rapper’s neck, beaming up at him. “You’re not going to get rid of me now, we’re meant to be. Forever together!”

Leaning down towards the vocal, Mark presses a sweet kiss against his temple before flicking Donghyuck’s forehead jokingly. “Yeah, _no matter what_ …”   

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end!!!!! This is the longest fic I’ve ever written and posted, and I’m so happy that I got to share it with you guys. I want to thank you all for all the love and support that you’ve given me. I definitely wouldn’t have come back if it wasn’t for your sweet comments and kudos, you gave me a lot of moral support when I wasn’t feeling inspired. I loved writing about these two since I love NCT to bits, and even though I don’t promise anything since I’m still busy as hell, I’m thinking about a jaeyong fic that explains their side of the story!  
> I hope that you enjoyed this journey as much as I did and I would obviously love to hear about your opinions as well! 
> 
> With lots of love,  
> Muttering Whispers.


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